SUBSCRIBE TO JAMES VS. BURGER

‘The Chilli Death’ Burger / ‘Bohemian’ Burger – Bruadar, Glasgow

Bruadar describes itself as “the local that the west end has been waiting for”. Located at the foot of Byres Road, Bruadar boasts 20 different handmade gourmet burgers and over 20 beers from all over the world. A large neon sign illuminates the bar from outside, reading ‘heartfelt beer and burgers’ and they seem to pride themselves on providing a warm and welcome atmosphere. Surely a burger made in a place where the tagline reads “heartfelt burgers” had to be good?

The Chilli Death Burger

I opted for the ‘Chilli Death’ burger, consisting of 6oz patty topped with jalapenos, chilli cheese, green chillies, sour cream and what is described on the menu as ‘death sauce’. The menu also states ‘Spicy. You have been warned’. I was curious to see if I could handle it. When I asked for the burger, we were told by the waitress that recently they have had to “calm it down a lot” as customers were ordering the burger and then sending it back because it was simply too hot. She offered to make it extra hot by adding extra jalapenos and chillies, but I opted to just have it as standard. Pamela on the other hand, ordered the Bohemian burger, which consists of a 6oz patty topped with chilli gouda cheese, sliced turkey, rocket, prosciutto and pesto mayo. All burgers come served on a toasted sour dough bun with dill pickle, tomato and lettuce and are served with red cabbage slaw and string fries.

First up, we’ll look at the Chilli Death burger. The burger looked good, however it wasn’t all positive. First of all, the toppings all tasted great, especially the chilli cheese and even the death sauce, which was actually just hot enough – not enough to make it inedible but hot enough to bring a slight tear to my eye. A lot of places will often overlook the bun when it comes to serving up a burger, but Bruadar have nailed it. The sour dough bun was toasted just right, tasted fresh and soaked up the flavours of the toppings perfectly. Even the string fries were light and extremely tasty and I could have easily eaten another portion of them as soon as mine were done. So where did it all go wrong? The patty itself lacked flavour and was overcooked, making it rather tough and chewey. It really let the burger down overall, as everything from the bun to the toppings worked well together. The beef itself was simply bland and it didn’t seem like a lot of care had gone into ensuring it had been cooked correctly.

The Bohemian Burger

As for the Bohemian burger, it was all much of the same. On the first bite, the excellent pesto mayo hit straight away and was packed full of flavour. The sliced turkey added depth and the chilli gouda gave the overall burger a bit of a kick. The beef itself, however, was overcooked and unseasoned and quite disappointing. My only other criticism was that there was far too much rocket on the burger – so much that it was hard to see the actual beef itself when the waitress brought it over.

I really wanted to like Bruadar. The guys have nailed the warm, welcoming atmosphere perfectly and it seems like it would be a great, laid-back place to take some friends, grab a few beers, play some pool or just catch up. The beer selection is excellent, with over 20 on offer, including the excellent Blue Moon from North America, which instantly makes any bar somewhere I want to visit. There are so many things about the burgers themselves that are great, but the beef patty itself, which is the most important part of any burger, really let things down. I’d be open to trying it again in the hope that it was just a one off bad experience, because if the guys could improve the beef it’d be one of the best burger joints in Scotland.

Price: £8.95

Have you tried this burger? Did you love it? If so, vote for it in the ‘Glasgow’s best burger’ award by clicking here.

Talk to us on Twitter and tell us what you thought of this burger! You can also leave your own review and comments below. We want to hear from you!

Bruadar is located in the heart of Glasgow’s West End, just a few minutes walk from Kelvinhall Subway station, as well as Partick Train/Subway Station.